| Unit name | Black and Indigenous Religions in the Early Modern Iberian World |
|---|---|
| Unit code | HISP30098 |
| Credit points | 20 |
| Level of study | H/6 |
| Teaching block(s) |
Teaching Block 1 (weeks 1 - 12) |
| Unit director | Dr. Fisk |
| Open unit status | Not open |
| Units you must take before you take this one (pre-requisite units) |
None |
| Units you must take alongside this one (co-requisite units) |
None |
| Units you may not take alongside this one |
None |
| School/department | Department of Hispanic, Portuguese and Latin American Studies |
| Faculty | Faculty of Arts |
Why is this unit important?
On this unit you will gain an understanding of the formation of African-descended and indigenous religions in the early modern Iberian world. You will analyse and contextualise written and visual primary sources and English and Spanish-language multidisciplinary scholarship, whilst taking a social and cultural history approach to examine the production and circulation of religious knowledge and material culture by black and indigenous people. The unit centres people of African and indigenous descent and their production of knowledge. You will examine these themes through analysis of primary material in Spanish and English and visual sources, including art, codices, maps, plays, trials, and wills, and connections will be made to shared histories in Spain, Portugal, and Brazil.
How does this unit fit into your programme of study?
The unit builds on early modern Hispanic world cultural histories studied in first and second year. The unit will deepen undergraduates’ understandings of the transformation of concepts of casta, racial difference, and gender and how twentieth-century intellectual traditions have shaped the study of cultural production.
An overview of content
“Black and Indigenous Religions” encourages you to connect and compare knowledge and material cultural production and hierarchies of difference across the Iberian world. On this unit you will develop and employ clear communication and presentation skills for a non-academic audience and synthesise and create arguments in written form to a standard appropriate to level H/6. This unit will explore indigenous and black religions in the early modern Iberian world, with a focus on Spanish America from the sixteenth to eighteenth centuries. We will study the entangled histories of people of African and indigenous descent and how religion was central to their experiences of colonialism, forced labour, and racialisation, while centring African-descended and indigenous religious practice and the remaking of early modern Catholicism.
How will students, personally, be different as a result of the unit?
Students will be trained in conducting historical research online, locating sources on databases and online library collections, building research bibliographies, and introduced to early modern Spanish palaeography. The unit asks students to challenge their own assumptions by taking an anti-racist and empathetic approach to the study of histories and cultures that are often silenced in traditional narratives.
Learning Outcomes
On successful completion of this unit, students will be able to:
Teaching will be delivered through a combination of synchronous sessions and asynchronous activities, including seminars as well as self-directed learning opportunities supported by tutor consultation.
Tasks that will help you acquire the necessary skills include:
Weekly seminar readings
In-class presentations
Contributions to class podcast and Padlets
Tasks which help you learn and prepare you for summative tasks (formative):
10-minute oral group presentations in seminars 1-5 with verbal feedback.
Tasks which count towards your unit mark (summative):
Primary source-based blog, 1000 words or a creative recorded presentation of equivalent length (25%) [ILOs 1-2 and 4]
Coursework essay, 3000 words (75%) [ILOs 1-4]
When assessment does not go to plan
When required by the Board of Examiners, you will normally complete reassessments in the same formats as those outlined above. However, the Board reserves the right to modify the form or number of reassessments required. Details of reassessments are normally confirmed by the School shortly after the notification of your results at the end of the academic year.
If this unit has a Resource List, you will normally find a link to it in the Blackboard area for the unit. Sometimes there will be a separate link for each weekly topic.
If you are unable to access a list through Blackboard, you can also find it via the Resource Lists homepage. Search for the list by the unit name or code (e.g. HISP30098).
How much time the unit requires
Each credit equates to 10 hours of total student input. For example a 20 credit unit will take you 200 hours
of study to complete. Your total learning time is made up of contact time, directed learning tasks,
independent learning and assessment activity.
See the University Workload statement relating to this unit for more information.
Assessment
The Board of Examiners will consider all cases where students have failed or not completed the assessments required for credit.
The Board considers each student's outcomes across all the units which contribute to each year's programme of study. For appropriate assessments, if you have self-certificated your absence, you will normally be required to complete it the next time it runs (for assessments at the end of TB1 and TB2 this is usually in the next re-assessment period).
The Board of Examiners will take into account any exceptional circumstances and operates
within the Regulations and Code of Practice for Taught Programmes.
